For Crow, clowning carries on family tradition

By Cherry Sokoloski
North Forty News

Usually, a clown has a happy smile painted on his face. But don't be surprised if Crow the Clown, who will walk in Wellington's Fourth of July parade, has a little tear in his eye, hidden behind the big cigar and the tall top hat.

This will be the second year for Crow's appearance in the Wellington parade, but it's not likely to be the last. For Crow, aka James Crawford of Fort Collins, clowning around is a family tradition. He learned the trade from his grandfather, who began dressing him up for parades when he was just 4 years old. He has even taken his clown name, Crow, from his grandfather.

Crow's parade jacket is covered with buttons that his grandfather collected over the years, a wide variety ranging from campaign buttons to Budweiser beer buttons. Even though the original Crow was a "diehard Republican," his jacket has campaign buttons for Al Gore, a Democrat, and Ross Perot, an independent.

Growing up, Crow and his family lived in the small town of Ely, Nev., where Crow and Little Crow were favorites in the Fourth of July parade. For them, said the present-day Crow, the Fourth was "like Christmas." Each year's parade had a different theme, and the duo matched their clown costumes to the theme.

"We did it to put a smile on someone's face," Crow recalled.

But the clown gig was also part of Crow's close connection with his granddad, who served as his father figure growing up.

The family moved from Ely to Bakersfield, Calif., when Crow was about 13. There were not as many parades in the city, but Crow's grandpa still dressed up as a clown whenever he could, on holidays or other special occasions.

Crow's grandfather died in 2007. Sometime after that, a friend told Crow about the Wellington Fourth of July parade, and it struck him that Wellington's small-town event was similar to the Ely parades when he was a child.

"Something just told me that that's what he would have wanted," said Crow.

So in 2009, he put on the face paint and his granddad's outfit for Wellington's celebration.

"It really took me back to when we used to do this together," he said. It was fun to see the kids – even the grown-up ones – enjoying his act. "I didn't know it would be such a hit."

At the same time, though, putting on the clown suit again after so many years, combined with the recent loss of his grandfather, was an emotional experience. "It was almost impossible," he remembered, to get ready for last year's parade.

In the years since Crow had last played the clown, his role had changed. He moved from his "Little Crow" character to "Crow," and with that came a change of costume. When he was small, Grandpa usually wore a top hat and he wore a derby. Now, he dons the top hat along with the button jacket in honor of his grandfather.

With the clown gear out of mothballs, Crow is making plans for the future. His daughter Samantha is almost 2, and he can already envision her in pigtails and a clown costume.

"It's a family tradition," Crow said, to make people smile and laugh. And, he added, he feels closest to his grandfather when he's in a parade, handing out candy to kids who still love a parade – and a clown.